Getty Jared Dudley with Anthony Davis & LeBron James.
The Los Angeles Lakers were able to secure their future by locking up LeBron James and Anthony Davis for at least the next three seasons. The team hasn’t always been able to retain their top talent over the last decade but that’s finally changed. One player they were able to re-sign to a one-year deal before signing the Davis or LeBron extension was Jared Dudley.
Dudley didn’t play a ton of minutes this season but he was a strong veteran on the bench and the Lakers clearly wanted him back. However, he’s starting to wish that he waited to sign his contract so that he could link himself to LeBron and Davis for the next few seasons.
Dudley is obviously joking but he’s quickly become a fan favorite. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he was able to find a way to stick with the team for the next three or four years. His body should hold up just fine if he’s not playing a lot.
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Dudley Believes Davis Will Be MVP This Year
Heading into this upcoming season, the Lakers might have the two best players in the NBA on their roster. LeBron almost won the MVP and Davis made First-Team All-NBA. The former has probably hit the ceiling of his greatness but the latter might be even better this year. Dudley has massive expectations of Davis this year.
“I’m expecting AD to go for the MVP. I’m expecting him to set the tone. We know LeBron, his years playing in this league and the accolades he has, but AD doesn’t have some of those accolades,” Dudley said.
“He has the talent, he has the determination, so I’m expecting AD to set the tone early,” he continued. “There might be games he has to miss on back-to-backs, that’s okay, but he’s 27, he should have been Defensive Player of the Year. He’s the future, and he’s the now.”
LeBron has already proven everything he can to the Lakers and himself and now it’s time to start grooming Davis to take over the team. He’s only 27 and just hitting his prime. There were times last season when he looked like the best player in the world but would sometimes be mitigated in the fourth quarter. Now that he has the confidence that comes with winning a title, he should be more consistent.
Davis Not Content With 1 Championship
Some players might win one championship and grow content. That’s now how it works in Los Angeles and fortunately, Davis isn’t wired that way. He tasted what it’s like to hold the Larry O’Brien trophy and he wants to do it again.
“I’m very motivated, I want to do it again,” Davis told Spectrum SportsNet. “When we won the Western Conference finals, Bron said, ‘Just wait until you win a championship and you hold that trophy, your love for winning just grows.’ And ever since holding that trophy, I just want to do it again.
“You want to do hold that trophy over and over and over. You get addicted to winning. So I want that feeling again. I want to hold that Larry O’Brien Trophy again and become a meme where I’m crying and people are using it for everything. Those are good memes.”
“I don’t think it was a doubt that I was coming back…LA is a place I want to be.” @AntDavis23 sits with our @geeter3 to discuss his contract extension with the #LakeShow, aspirations for the upcoming season, and more. @Lakers
Davis has put himself in the best situation possible to keep winning championships. The Lakers have put together a great team with strong leadership. If the team can stay healthy, a dynasty is very possible for this group of guys.
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